Yorkshire Wrap Up Promotion
Yorkshire will return to the top flight of the County Championship in 2025 after successfully securing the points needed to confirm promotion.
The Vertu Motors-backed side headed into the final game of the campaign against Northamptonshire at Headingley aware that ten points would secure promotion alongside Sussex.
Hopes of a winning end to the season took a hit when the opening day of play was lost to rain, with the teams only able to take to the field in the middle of the second afternoon – with Yorkshire winning the toss and electing to bowl.
Ben Coad would be the star of the afternoon as he grabbed 3 wickets for 29 runs to leave Northamptonshire struggling on 117/6 at the close of play, and he ended up with four wickets in total when the visitors were skittled out for 147 on the third morning – with Matthew Fisher picking up three quick wickets of his own to close out the innings.
The performance secured three bonus points with the ball and the number of points needed to earn promotion then dropped to six when rivals Middlesex missed out on four bonus points when battling in their game with Sussex.
Although Finlay Bean was dismissed early for just eleven, Adam Lyth and James Wharton then grabbed control with a fine partnership of 260 as Yorkshire charged into the lead – knowing that 350 was the target to earn the required batting points to secure a promotion.
Lyth would be trapped LBW by Fateh Singh for 147 – passing 14,000 first-class runs for the county in the process – but Will Luxton then joined Wharton at the crease to take the score on to 371-2 and confirm graduation to Division One.
Electing against an early declaration on the final day in a bid to try and chase victory, Yorkshire instead took the decision to bat on although Luxton was an early casualty when he departed for 49 to leave the score on 392-3.
Jonny Bairstow joined Wharton at the crease to entertain the watching crowd with an all-action partnership of 194 before Wharton was finally dismissed for 285 – the fifth highest individual score ever seen at Headingley.
Bairstow would hit 78 before being bowed by Saif Zaib, with George Hill and Jordan Thompson both passing 50 before the declaration eventually came on 727-7.
Fisher then grabbed the two wickets to fall when Northamptonshire went back in to bat for a second time before the game drew to a close as a draw, allowing Ottis Gibson to sign off from his time as Head Coach having achieved his goal of leading Yorkshire back to the top flight.